Coal Atlas: Facts and figures on a fossil fuel

Coal Atlas: Facts and figures on a fossil fuel

Global demand for coal is still rising: EU member states have been reluctant to take action against coal projects and continue to subsidize coal related business with almost 10 billion euros per year. King Coal also generates 43 percent of Germany’s total energy.

Our Coal Atlas contains the latest facts and figures on the use of coal and its environmental and social consequences. With more than 60 detailed graphics, the atlas illustrates the coal industry’s impact on nature, health, labour, human rights and politics.

Table of contents:

GEOLOGY AND GEOGRAPHY - SUBTERRANEAN FORESTSCoal is formed from vegetation at high temperatures and pressures, cut off from the air. The older the coal, the more carbon and energy it contains. Deposits are located in all continents.

HISTORY - THE BEDROCK OF INDUSTRYCoal is the fuel that powered the Industrial Revolution and the transformation of economies and societies over the last two centuries. Its benefits have been huge – while the damage it has wrought was ignored for too long. A switch to cleaner fuels now heralds the end of the coal era.

GREENHOUSE GASES - SPOILING THE CLIMATEDigging up coal and using it to generate electricity churns out emissions that intensify the greenhouse effect. Coal is one of the biggest sources of climate change.

NATURE - A CONTAMINATED FUTUREOpen-cast mining destroys the landscape of both the pit and the surrounding area. Efforts to restore these areas often fail and the surface above the underground mines sinks.

HEALTH - FINE DUST, FAT PRICESmoke and fumes from coal-fired power plants make us ill. They are responsible for hundreds of thousands of deaths worldwide each year. Atmospheric and environmental pollution from coal costs billions in health expenses.

LABOUR - DIRTY JOBS IN A DIRTY INDUSTRYAlthough coal production is still on the rise, the sector is employing fewer people. Structural change has spread to all continents. Nevertheless, mining underground remains one of the most dangerous occupations worldwide.

SUBSIDIES - HIDDEN PAYMENTS, UNPAID BILLSThe coal industry uses taxpayers’ money to keep its prices low – and it does not compensate for the costs of climate change or disease. A brief look at the scale of the problem.

CHINA - BLACK FUEL, IN THE REDChange is under way for the world’s biggest coal consumer; consumption in 2014 was down. Renewables are up. Coal-fired power plants are working at less than full capacity.

INDIA - RICH IN COAL BUT POOR IN ENERGYCoal is an important part of India’s energy mix, and consumption is rising quickly as the economy expands. Local production is not enough: strong demand is attracting imports from Australia and elsewhere.

UNITED STATES - PAST ITS PRIMEThe US coal industry is losing market share to gas and renewables. The nation’s dirtiest fuel is giving way to cleaner alternatives.

RUSSIA - THE LAND WITHOUT DOUBT OR DEBATECoal is one of the dirtiest industries in Russia. Apart from hydropower, renewable energy is practically non-existent. Civil society groups that might push for more sustainable sources of power are few and far between.

GERMANY - A TURNAROUND YET TO TURNGermany is phasing out nuclear power and has come to rely more on coal for its electricity. Despite a steep rise in renewable energy, the use of coal is endangering Germany’s ambitious target to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions.

CARBON CAPTURE AND STORAGE - PROBLEMS AT DEPTHWith the promise of “clean coal”, the industry intends to store carbon dioxide underground. However, this method of dealing with the climate crisis fails for both technical and economic reasons.